1878 - James Taylor Cochran established Cochran & Co General Engineering and Shipbuilding works in Birkenhead. 1898 - company moved to larger yard in Annan and registered as Cochran & Co Annan Limited. 1899 - first Annan built Cochran boiler completed. 1901 - shipbuilding ceased and company concentrated soley on boiler manufacture. 1902 - founders James Cochran and Edward Compton retired from the company. 1913 - undertook special oil firing trials in order to optimise its use in steam raising. 1914-1918 - all production was controlled by the Admiralty during World War 1. 1918 - all employees agreed to form an Industrial Council. 1928 - pressure vessel manufacture started. 1934 - launched a range of horizontal shell-type waste heat boilers. 1940 - the Cochran Economic boiler launched. 1944 - made armour plating for tanks and some of the Mulberry Units for the D-Day landings. 1964 - the Cochran Spheroid Boiler launched. 1966 - the Clansman, a hot water boiler, launched. 1968 - acquired Ruston and Hornsby of Lincoln. 1969 - Industrial Council ended. Company merged with John Thompson of Glasgow to become John Thompson Cochran. 1970 - Clarke Chapman Ltd merged with John Thompson Cochran to become the Clarke Chapman John Thompson Group creating the Thompson Cochran Division. 1989 - became part of the Rolls-Royce Industrial Power Group. 1995 - became the first company in the world to be awarded the Chinese seal of approval for safety. 1995 - became BIB Cochran. 2010 - bought out by a Chinese company and became Cochran Ltd.